Why Seoul Is Poised To Be The New Focal Point Of The Asian Art Market

Why Seoul is poised to be the new focal point of the Asian art market.

- Jin Kyeongji

In a kaleidoscopic YouTube-inspired video which featured at Frieze Seoul, a new international art fair that debuted in September 2022, emerging South Korean visual artist Ryu Sung Sil becomes a virtual subject who poses this question: What is the most important thing in this world? At first glance, the visual and narratives of this video seem far-fetched. But upon taking a closer look, one sees that it encapsulates life’s brutal realities, exploring thought-provoking themes such as religion, war, sex, and death, with which people can immediately relate.

The playful, kitschy visual elements in the artist’s work are the ‘humour-carrot’ that she dangles to attract her potential audience; relatability and accessibility are behind her preference for working digitally and using online platforms as a base for her creative work. The Seoul native opines that her audience is not limited to art museum visitors, thus her choice of working in the virtual world allows her to reach a wider group of people who may otherwise be indifferent to art.

Her views are echoed by Song Bo Young, managing director of Kukje Gallery — a stalwart of Seoul’s art scene — who says that “if social media can attract visitors (to an exhibition), it also has potential to cultivate a new generation of art lovers”.

Offline, South Korea’s art market is thriving. According to the country’s Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, sales surpassed 1 trillion won (USD782 million) in for the first time in 2022, mainly from artworks being purchased from galleries and at art fairs. And this figure has yet to include the revenue from the inaugural Frieze Seoul, which comprised over 120 exhibitors.

Taking shape: the art scene